mackenzie Scott donates $80โ Million to Howard University
WASHINGTON – MacKenzie Scott โhas gifted howard University with โข$80 million, tehโ historically Black โuniversity announced Monday, marking one โขof โthe largest donations in itsโข 166-year history.The substantial contribution will bolster Howard’s โendowment andโข support itsโ strategic priorities, particularly in the arts and humanities.
The donation arrives as โHoward University navigates ambitiousโ growth โplans and seeks to expand opportunities for its students andโข faculty. Scott’s gift joins a recent wave of philanthropicโ support from the author and philanthropist to several Historically โBlack Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), totaling over โค$240 million in the past month alone. This ongoing investment underscores aโฃ commitment to addressing systemic inequities in higherโค education and empowering institutions that serve underrepresented communities.โ
Howard โUniversity Presidentโข Wayne โA.I. Frederick โstatedโ the โคdonation will be โฃused to establish an endowed chair โin the arts โand humanities,โ as the school announced in 2022.
Scott’s generosity โฃextends beyondโข Howard, with recent gifts including $38 millionโ to Spelman College in Atlanta, announced โNovember โข3, to enhance the student experience, modernize โขtechnology, and expand financial aid.She also donated $38 million to Alabama State University,โ $63 millionโค to Morgan state โUniversity in Baltimore,โข and another $38 million โto the University โคof Maryland Eastern Shore last month.
A โฃformerโค wife of Amazon founder Jeffโ Bezos,โข Scott pledged to give the โฃmajority of herโค wealth โto charitable causes following โtheir divorce, joining theโ Giving โPledge in 2019. Her philanthropic approach is characterizedโ by trust-based โgiving, providing recipients with flexibility in how they utilize the funds to best meet their โneeds.